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8 Best Shore Dives for 2023
June 17, 2023
Shore diving is the most accessible type of diving, you can simply put your gear on, waddle to shoreline, and off you go.
Shore diving is ideal for beginners who are still learning essential dive skills and want to build their confidence in the shallows. It also offers a lot more freedom for experienced divers, allowing them to set their own schedule without having to watch the time for when they should return to the boat.
Avoid boat-induced seasickness by exploring our eight best shore dives for 2023.
1.Hilma Hooker, Bonaire
No shore diving list would be complete without mentioning Bonaire; considered to be the shore diving capital of the world. This small island in the Caribbean has beautiful clear water that stays warm year round averaging 28°C/80°F. Visibility is often over 30m/100ft in these waters, and most of its 60 dive sites are reachable from the shore. Hilma Hooker is a particularly thrilling wreck dive. This large wreck has a colorful history (including drug raids!), and it sank over 50 years ago between two beautiful reefs. The upper portion of the wreck sits at 16m deep making it accessible for beginners, and advanced certified divers are able to adventure to the lower portion at 30m/100ft. The wreck has been taken over by marine life including sea fans, sponges, and many corals that attract silverside, parrotfish, frogfish, and large tarpon. The ship is penetrable, but only for expert divers with knowledge of navigating tight wrecks.
2. Blue Hole, Dahab, Egypt
Blue Hole is truly a unique and awe inspiring shore dive. Starting from a crack in the reef (known as ‘El Bells’) just past the blue hole itself, from the surface you will descend to 27m/88ft down the tunnel until you pop out into the blue. From here, divers can then make their way along the wall of coral overhangs until they reach the Blue Hole to end the dive. There is plenty of marine life both in the blue hole itself, and along the wall that leads you to it, this includes clownfish, pufferfish, nudibranchs, and octopuses living in the beautiful and colorful hard corals, gorgonian fans, and anemones. Larger sea creatures also visit the area such as turtles, eagle rays, and the occasional shark and dolphin. Visibility at Blue Hole is usually excellent, and the water remains calm year-round, meaning it’s possible to dive at any time. Water temperatures range from 21°C/70°F to - 28°C/82°F depending on the time of year. Divers of all abilities can visit Blue Hole but a local guide is required due to such extreme depths here.
3. Silfra Fissure, Iceland
Silfra Fissure is a truly unique dive site and a shore dive not to be missed by adventurous advanced divers. The geographical wonder of this site is what makes it so special, it sits in the gap between two tectonic plates; Eurasia and North America. You will want to take some pictures here as during a narrow point in the dive, divers are able to reach out and actually touch both plates at the same time. As you would expect in Icelandic waters the temperature remains a chilly 2°C/35°F to 4°C/39°F year-round, meaning divers will need drysuit certification. This filtered glacier water also has incredible clarity with visibility reaching 100m/330ft. Divers will enter the water by descending down steps to the submerged platform. There is limited marine life in Silfra as fish tend to stay in Thingvellir lake, but the stunning natural architecture is plenty to take in at this beautiful site.
If you are about to retire from work and are thinking of finally taking up scuba diving, check this out: Learning to Dive After Retirement
4. Puako, Kona Island, Hawaii
Puako is a favorite dive location for Hawaii locals. It is easy for divers to access the site through a sand channel in the rocks, and once submerged you will be greeted by a mini canyon with overhangs, hiding eels, and many sea critters. As Puako descends, caverns, pinnacles, and lava tunnels are revealed. Marine life often spotted at this site include turtles, butterflyfish, frogfish and Hawaiian state fish Humuhumunukunukuapua’a. Water temperature varies from 23°C/75°F to 27°C/81°F, and this site can be visited year round as long as the weather conditions are calm. It is best for divers to arrive early to avoid difficult currents when getting in and out of the water. This site is best suited to more experienced and advanced divers as you can dive to 30m/100ft and even swim through some of the large lava tubes.
5. Keyhole Reef, Roatan, Honduras
This beautiful dive site is a great location for divers of all abilities to explore a reef which runs from a canyon into an open water lagoon. There is plenty to explore at Keyhole Reef, and following the guide you will cruise through the site with the opportunity of swim-throughs for more advanced divers. This site starts at 9m/30ft and descends to 30m/100ft with a thriving reef that stretches down a steady slope. Snappers, butterflyfish, and the rare toadfish can be seen at this reef as well as colorful green starfish and star coral. It is possible to dive throughout the year at Keyhole Reef but the dry season runs from March until September which offers the best conditions. The water stays warm with a yearly average of 27°C/81°F.
This famous wreck has suffered at the hands of mankind and nature, initially sunk after hitting two mines, it became submerged in 1942 when seismic tremors submerged the vessel on a sandy bank. It is now a scuba favorite wreck diving site that is easily accessible from the shore, it is at gradient depth so it can be explored by all levels of divers. Tube sponges, and hard and soft corals have grown on the wreck to create an artificial reef that is full of life. Divers can spot sweetlips, angelfish, batfish, blacktip reef sharks, and garden eels. The dive season runs throughout the year and water temperatures range from 27°C/81°F to 29°C/84°F.
7. Glassilaun Beach, Ireland
Diving from the shore at Glassilaun beach gives underwater photographers a great selection of marine terrain and sea life to capture. The sandy sea bed leading up to the reef is full of hidden catfish and cuttlefish that take a keen eye to spot. Once you reach the reef, you will descend to a maximum depth of 12m/39ft. It is a great shore dive regardless of your certification, but the waters are chilly and range from 8°C/46°F to 15°C/59°F. In calm conditions divers can enjoy up to 20m/65ft of visibility, and there is lots of interesting sea life to be spotted including spider crabs, dogfish, compass jellyfish, shrimps, spiny starfish, and more. The dive site is located in a sheltered cove so can be accessed year round if the weather allows.
8. The Sand Falls, Los Cabos, Mexico
Another shore dive that is unmissable due to its stunning, natural underwater architecture is the Sand Falls of Los Cabos in Baja California. Diving at the falls gives visitors the chance to see cascading sand falling through the ocean, which is caused by the friction between Pacific and North American tectonic plates. Although often included as part of boat trips or liveaboards, it is possible to access this dive site from the shore. Divers will need to have an advanced certification as the sandfalls are seen at a depth of 30m/100ft. It is possible to dive at this site throughout the year due to an average water temperature of 20°C/68°F, and the visibility tends to be around 10m/32ft. Aside from this natural phenomenon, divers can also enjoy plenty of marine life including black coral, angelfish, seahorses, octopuses, and trumpetfish.
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